Los Angeles Rams Rumors & News

We’re coming up on Week 4 of the NFL season and that means that waiver claim priority will be based on the current league standings instead of last year’s. Of course, waiver priority is based on the inverted NFL standings, which have built in tiebreakers to sort out the many logjams that naturally occur.

Throughout the offseason and the first three weeks of the regular season, the Browns enjoyed top priority thanks to their 1-15 finish last year. Now, we have a brand new pecking order. Here is a full rundown of the current waiver claim priority, which will change from week to week (Twitterlinksvia Field Yates of ESPN.com):

Rams defensive lineman Ethan Westbrooks was arrested for possession of a stolen handgun over the weekend, ESPN.com’s Alden Gonzalez tweets. The news was first reported by the Southern California News Group.

Westbrooks was pulled over for speeding on Friday night when an officer found a handgun loaded with 13 rounds of ammunition. Later, cops ran the serial number of the firearm and found that it was stolen eight years earlier. Westbrooks is now facing five felony charges related to the weapon and has an arraignment scheduled for Oct. 5.

The Rams agreed to a one-year extension with Westbrooks earlier this year, an agreement that took him from a $1.797MM salary this year to $1.25MM. In exchange for that, Westbrooks received a $1.75MM salary for the 2018 season. However, a felony conviction would put that pact in jeopardy. Even without a conviction, Westbrooks will likely be in for a suspension at the very minimum, though that may not come until the legal process has finished.

Westbrooks’ role with the Rams has slowly grown over the years ever since joining them as a UDFA in 2014. Last year, he finished out 2016 with 24 tackles, two sacks, and a fumble recovery for a touchdown. This year, he notched a sack in the season opener and played in 66 snaps (38 running, 28 passing) through three games.

On Thursday night, the Rams will get a glimpse at what might have been when they take on San Francisco at Levi’s Stadium. Of course, the Rams are very high on McVay – who is the league’s youngest coach – so they have no cause for regret at this time.

The perceived Aaron Donald-acclimation period will not keep him out of any more Rams games. Sean McVay said Friday the two-time All-Pro will start Sunday against the Redskins after reporting to the team six days ago.

While McVay didn’t provide clarity on Donald’s role as a full- or part-time player in his first game back — and first in a new defense — the Rams will have their top player suited up and ready to help the team push for its first 2-0 start since its 2001 Super Bowl season.

Donald remains without an extension but has procured an insurance policy. He’s making less than $2MM in base salary in this his fourth season.

Reports out of Los Angeles indicated Donald may sit for at least one game in order to shake off rust and feel comfortable in Wade Phillips‘ defense, but it looks like he’ll be doing that while playing. Donald’s landed on the top All-Pro team in each of his past two seasons, and while he’s going to be playing in a 3-4 base set for the first time, the three technique stands to provide a significant talent boost for the Los Angeles defense.

There’s definitely a youth movement in Cleveland and Los Angeles. According to data released by the NFL on Thursday, the Browns had an average age of 24.17 on their Week 1 roster, making them the league’s youngest team. The Rams – who are directed by the league’s youngest head coach – were not far behind with an average age of 25.11.

As a whole, the game is younger than ever. This year, there a total of nine teams started the season with an average age less than 26. A few clubs are bucking the trend, however. The Cardinals had the “oldest” roster in the NFL with an average age of 27.47. Arizona had 14 players at the age of 30 or over, tying them for the league lead with the Ravens.

The league also compiled data on the colleges with the most players in the NFL. This year, Alabama and LSU tied for the lead with 39 each. LSU had sole leadership atop the perch from 2014-2016, but they now have the company of another SEC school.